Belleville, IL - The Family Martial Art & Fitness Center

**Airman Kai** · Posted On: 10/18/2006 3:37pm

The Family Martial Art & Fitness Center. The name by itself conjures up images of 8 year old black belts and supremely overweight instructors. I mean, it’s got FAMILY and FITNESS in the name, for God's sake; it must be a disaster area, right?

Wrong.

Although The Family Martial Art & Fitness Center does indeed offer Karate classes in the early afternoon, the focus of the review is solely on the training that happens once the dark curtain of night falls. I still wonder to this day why this school was so hard to find.

ALIVENESS

This one is so easy it’s ridiculous. This school trains alive, all the time, simple as that. Whether sparring or rolling, you’d better be prepared for full contact goodness. All the coaches (MMA, Kickboxing, and Karate) get right into the sparring/rolling with the students, and while they don’t (often) fully unleash their years of training on you, they’re always sure to make you work hard. You WILL be drenched in sweat, end of story.

EQUIPMENT

Plenty or punching and kicking pads line the walls, and several heavy bags and a few round timers round out the modest amount of equipment this school has. You’re going to need your own gear from the very beginning, as well, because there isn’t any loaner gear. Everything’s in fine shape, but the lack of any extraordinary bells and whistles (a ring or cage, for example) stops this school from rating any more than a 7.

GYM SIZE

The facility is roughly 7000 sq ft, with half of that having padded flooring. Although bathrooms, sinks and water coolers are in attendance, the lack of a shower keeps this category at a 7 as well.

INSTRUCTOR/STUDENT RATIO

With an instructor-to-student ration of roughly 6:1, there’s almost never a time when you can’t get 1-on-1 time from an instructor. The fact that the instructors are great helps this even further, as they’re practically looking for opportunities to give you individual instruction when you need it.

ATMOSPHERE/ATTITUDE

Before coming to this school, I was convinced that there wasn’t a person alive who could spout the whole, “You must have dedication and inner resolve,” line without sounding utterly corny. They did it, though. I came to 3 classes before I paid a single penny, and I was never hassled me about it, and in the end, it was ME who initiated talk of how to go about paying these guys for their time. The instructors (all pro athletes at one time or another, and currently a competing MMA sportsman in one case) all have fantastic attitudes, and training sessions are often followed by a 30 minutes bullshitting session just because everybody is that cool with each other. From day 1, they’ll greet you happily as long as you bring the same attitude.

STRIKING INSTURCTION

Striking instruction is mostly taught be Jeff Bedard, who practically makes it his mission to make sure you have a solid striking game. If you suck when you arrive, he’ll work on getting your basics up to par immediately, and as soon as you’re ready, he’ll hit you with the next level. Having competed in both boxing and kickboxing events, it’s a no-brainer to trust in his instruction, which is solid and effective.

GRAPPLING INSTRUCTION

Jeremy Genin, an active and winning participant in the local and not so local MMA competitions, does an almost perfect job. While he definitely has the experience (and strength) to make HIMSELF good, he has a good attitude towards teaching and will explain even the most complex grappling moves. A downside to be considered is that he has virtually no Gi experience, so if Jiu-Jitsu competitions were a thing you wanted to do, the best training would be likely found elsewhere.

LAST WORD

This school’s overall package, which includes fair pricing, good instruction, and more than adequate facilities, qualifies this Gym as having official “Diamond in the Rough” status.

**IzzyDaHedgehog** · Posted On: 10/18/2006 8:05pm

My ex girlfriend is from Belleville and she used to take karate classes and wanted to start mma for some reason. If you see her, armbar her.

I offer nothing else.

**knuckle dragger** · Posted On: 2/11/2007 8:19am

Did you eventually settle on this as your school of choice? I am currently working out with the Hong Brothers in O'Fallon IL. They also do BJJ and TKD. I was looking for a grappeling school around this area. I did not know about Family Martial Arts etc. I sure did not want to go all the way to Vaghi Jiu Jitsu over in St. Louis.

***JohnnyCache*** · Posted On: 8/30/2007 10:44am

hey kai did you mean to say the grappling instructor has very little experience IN the gi?

**Airman Kai** · Posted On: 9/01/2007 4:34am

Originally Posted by JohnnyCache

hey kai did you mean to say the grappling instructor has very little experience IN the gi?

Yes. I'll change that now.

**BackFistMonkey** · Posted On: 9/01/2007 4:49am

Awesome Kai . I am glad you found something that fits the bill .

**sdave** · Posted On: 9/01/2007 11:17am

Excellent analysis.

Category-by-category explanation behind each score should be mandatory for all reviews.

The instructors seem to be well qualified and active competitors. 8's suggest success in "top-level competitions" (ostensibly by students, not just the coaches). Do the students compete at that level?

**kwoww** · Posted On: 9/01/2007 11:46am

Sounds like an excellent school.

**Airman Kai** · Posted On: 11/06/2007 4:48pm

Originally Posted by sdave

Excellent analysis.

Category-by-category explanation behind each score should be mandatory for all reviews.

The instructors seem to be well qualified and active competitors. 8's suggest success in "top-level competitions" (ostensibly by students, not just the coaches). Do the students compete at that level?

The training actually focuses on getting you into competition shape, so yes, some of the students compete in the St Louis area's MMA game, but only the most willing go pro.